Saturday, October 22, 2016

Of course, of course, it's the famous Mr. Ed, the talking horse, with moving mouth mask. I'm betting a lot of kids wearing this on Halloween got egged or shaving-creamed but good. Just sayin'. (This one comes from the stable of eBay'r 2013vintagetoys.)

Friday, October 21, 2016

Good coverage of Roger Corman' Fantastic Planet and Not of This Earth, plus a solid layout with lots of photos, makes issue 23 of Castle of Frankenstein a good read. Unfortunately, coverage of the Planet of the Apes series, which could have been better represented, is marred by yet another dislike-fest (so much bitterness in the 1970s, oh my) from Paul J. Wishninsky (nom de plume alert?). Edward Felipe soothes the burn with his article on George Pal's Doc Savage. Sort of. He doesn't cover the movie, just provides a good background to the pulp superhero who predated Superman.

Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Nothing like a man versus ape illustration to get the blood pumping, right? I'm not sure which Jungle Jim movie this Mexican lobby card is for, but note that Chita gets third-banana billing. Not bad for a chimp.

While the hooded executioner, with his blood-dripping axe, shown in this Mexican lobby card for La Ropa Del Verdugo (Dressed to Kill), is certainly dressed to kill, I don't think Sherlock Holmes needs to worry about him much in this last movie of the series that starred Basil Rathbone as Holmes and Nigel Bruce as Doctor Watson. Nevertheless, this lobby is thrilling to see; from its fear-inducing executioner, to the hanged man, to the vibrant text style and background, it's a fine example how a lobby card can dress up a movie by outright lying. While Holmes faces danger, its nothing as sharp as that axe. But after seeing this card, wouldn't you want to see the movie?

This is a simple Halloween witch with honeycomb cauldron from Paper Art. While you could tape it to a wall and show one side, it's really meant to be hung so both sides of the honeycomb cauldron, and witch, can be seen. The style is neither here nor there, and seems about right for a 1970s to 1980s approach to Halloween decorations: more child friendly and cheaply printed.

I'm a pushover for Halloween paper decorations. Not overly fond of "cute" stuff, but I had this Beistle mobile in my closet for ages, and I like the colors and cartoon whimsy. So now it's hanging from the ceiling this Halloween, and for many more to come.